A survey conducted by Horizon Research and published in
China Youth Daily on Monday has shown that while the
overseas education sector is booming, the proportion of students
furthering their education abroad remains low. Moreover, studying
abroad remains a privilege reserved for students from high-income
families.
The sample survey was conducted in major cities around China
including Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xi'an and Qingdao. About
2,553 people between the ages of 18 and 60 participated in the
survey.
According to survey results, 5.6 percent of respondents intend
to further their studies abroad. Upon further analysis, Horizon
discovered that most of these people came from well-to-do families,
some with parents who have themselves received higher education,
whether overseas or not.
The average Chinese family cannot afford the high costs attached
to an overseas education.
Other stumbling blocks to an overseas education include visa
issues, inexperience in traveling outside of China, speaking the
language, and a reticence about adjusting to alien living
conditions.?
However, a new form of overseas education, known as cooperative
or joint education, is offering more Chinese a more affordable
option. Similar to external programs offered by established
institutions such as the University of London, students in China
attend classes at local schools and colleges. They sit for
examinations prepared by the foreign institution and graduate with
degrees offered by these institutions.
Almost half of the survey respondents support this alternative
route to obtaining an overseas degree. 41 percent of them said that
in addition to earning foreign degrees, they would improve their
English; 25.5 percent believed they would learn more about China's
current affairs as well as international technologies; and 23.4
percent indicated that it was a more economical way to further
their studies.
However, there were those who had their doubts about the system.
About 27.7 percent pointed out that the overseas experience is very
important and valuable; 21.3 percent believed that foreign
universities are better than local ones and therefore it would make
sense to actually be enrolled in a foreign university; 14.9 percent
said they sought knowledge other than that to be found in books;
and 9.9 percent expressed their concern about the quality of such
cooperative or joint courses.
According to UNESCO statistics, Chinese students form the
majority of the overseas student population around the world. One
in every seven students studying overseas comes from China.
(China.org.cn by Wang Ke, July 13, 2006)
